Another Apparent Suicide Brings Financial World Death Toll to 6 in 2014

A 33-year-old JPMorgan employee jumped to his death from the roof of the firm’s Hong Kong headquarters Tuesday, adding to a series of untimely deaths in the banking and big business arena in recent weeks.

According to Russian state media outlet RT, that toll has risen to six, and half from JPMorgan alone:

The latest apparent suicide marks the 3rd sudden death at JP Morgan and the 6th in the global financial world in just a few weeks.

On February 3, a 37 – year old JP Morgan executive director died at his home in Stamford, Connecticut. The cause of death, however, remains unclear and will be determined after a toxicology report is completed.

About a month ago, 39-year-old Gabriel Magee, a JP Morgan vice president in technology operations, died after falling from JPMorgan’s London headquarters.

Other apparent business suicides include a 58-year-old former senior manager for Deutsche Bank, who was found hanged in his home; Karl Slim, the managing director of Tata Motors aged 51, and 50-year-old Mike Dueker who worked for Russell Investment and was found dead on January 29 close to the Tacoma Narrows Bridge in Washington State after being reported missing on the same day.

Americablog, however, doubled that number by broadening the criteria.

Meanwhile, the New York Post relayed that JPMorgan has noted the tragic pattern and is making a corporate-style intervention:

As a result of the tragedies, JPM is reaching out to its 270,000 employees globally to inform them about the bank’s ongoing employee-assistance program to manage stress and depression, a bank spokesman said.

Whether the deaths were each due to individual, personal circumstances (i.e., “stress and depression,” possible marital issues) or part of some bigger picture remains to be determined.

–Posted by Kasia Anderson